UNDER EMBARGO
UNTIL 00:01 10 SEPTEMBER
A law from 1944 that mandates Christian worship in non-religious
state schools in England is coming under challenge in Parliament
today as peers debate replacing it with a requirement for
inclusive assemblies for all, says Humanists UK.
The law was controversial even when first agreed seven decades
ago, and is now widely seen as unacceptable, with new
polling of parents released today showing that 60% of them
oppose it being enforced.
YouGov found that most parents (65%) were not aware the
collective worship law existed. But, once they were made aware of
it, 60% opposed the law being enforced. Just 24% thought it
should be enforced, with a further 12% saying they weren’t sure.
The poll was based on questions used in a 2011 poll commissioned by the BBC. At
that time, 30% of parents thought the law should be enforced,
suggesting opposition has grown in the last decade. Humanists UK
says the results provide yet another reason to replace compulsory
worship with inclusive assemblies that are suitable for all.
The UK is the only state in the world in which a government
imposes Christian worship in all state schools, including those
without a religious character, as standard. Parents may withdraw
their children from worship and sixth form pupils in England and
Wales may withdraw themselves. But the process is often onerous
and no educationally meaningful alternative is offered in the
vast majority of schools. In some schools, the law is only
patchily observed but, in March, the UK
Government said if it is made aware of English schools
breaching collective worship rules, they will be ‘investigated’
and ‘reminded of their duty on this matter’, prompting alarm
among many who had hoped the law would become a dead letter.
The Education (Assemblies) Bill is being brought as a Private
Members’ Bill by All-Party Parliamentary Humanist Group (APPHG)
Vice-Chair Baroness Burt. Its second reading in the House of
Lords today marks the first time such a Bill has been debated.
The Bill would remove the requirement for schools without a
religious character in England to hold collective worship.
Instead, it would introduce a requirement for these schools to
hold inclusive assemblies designed to further pupils’ ‘spiritual,
moral, social, and cultural development’ and suitable for all
children regardless of their own or parents’ religion or belief.
That could include religious topics, but not in a way that
presents any particular religion or belief as true. The Bill
leaves the requirement to carry out worship in faith schools
untouched but requires children whose parents withdraw them to be
provided with a meaningful educational alternative in line with
the provision available in other schools.
Every year, Humanists UK is contacted by hundreds of parents,
seeking advice because they object to collective worship and
believe the practice is infringing on their or their children’s
freedom of religion or belief. In fact, it receives more requests
for assistance about this issue than any other.
Humanists UK Education Campaigns Manager Dr Ruth Wareham
commented:
‘The findings of this poll provide yet another reason to scrap
compulsory worship in favour of inclusive assemblies that are
suitable for pupils from all backgrounds.
‘Assemblies can play an important role in bringing diverse
communities together around shared values. But they can only do
this if everyone’s beliefs are treated equally and everyone feels
included. If it becomes law, Baroness Burt’s Assemblies Bill will
give pupils a regular opportunity to celebrate achievements, find
out about different religions and beliefs, explore moral and
ethical questions, and reflect on what is happening in the world
around them in a fully inclusive way. This represents a brilliant
opportunity to revitalise the communal life of our diverse state
schools and we strongly encourage all peers to support it.’
Notes:
The Education (Assemblies) Bill is due to be debated on Friday in
a session that includes the debate of two other private members’
bills. The session will start at 10 am, suggesting the Bill
(which will be debated second) will be discussed some time
between 10.30 and 11.30.
Read the full
results of the poll.
Read the Education
(Assemblies) Bill.
Read our most recent article on the Bill to
replace compulsory worship with inclusive assemblies passing its
first stage in the Lords.
Read our latest article on the Government
saying it will ‘remind schools of their duty’ to carry out
Christian collective worship.
Read our article on the UN
Committee pressing the UK to repeal collective worship laws.
Read our article on children’s
rights experts telling the UK to repeal compulsory collective
worship laws.
